Firelight supported First Peoples Wellness Circle and Thunderbird Partnership Foundation to engage and report on experiences of anti-Indigenous racism within mental health and addictions systems.

Anti-Indigenous racism in health care has been both a source of, and a reflection of colonial violence for decades. Recent events, such as the tragic deaths of Brian Sinclair and Joyce Echaquan, have brought this issue to the forefront, sparking public conversation and calling for systemic change.

By engaging with mental wellness workers from coast to coast to coast, we have gathered valuable insights and developed a set of recommendations to prevent and respond to racism within these systems. The report is based on dialogue and input gathered from a series of roundtable discussions with 96 participants across 5 sessions, as well as a post-engagement survey. It focuses on recommendations for preventing and responding to anti-Indigenous racism in health care and reinforces the importance of supporting distinct Indigenous voices, values, and ways of being.

Firelight supported the Aboriginal Sports Circle to develop The National Strategy: The Spirit of Sport - Active Together, which envisions a future where all Indigenous peoples in Canada - across all ages, abilities, and regions - have access to meaningful opportunities that inspire hope, foster well-being, and strengthen communities and Indigenous nationhood. This future is shaped by Indigenous needs and interests, ensuring a self-determined Indigenous sport, physical activity, and recreation system that prospers alongside, and at times connects with, an inclusive Canadian system.

At the heart of this strategy is the recognition and restoration of Indigenous ways of knowing, being, and doing. This includes revitalizing Indigenous sports, games, and land-based activities, while integrating cultural values and teachings that support holistic well-being.

Once implemented, the National Strategy will serve as a powerful framework for collaboration, empowering stakeholders to build alliances, share best practices, and enhance operational capacity. A proposed tenfold increase in investment will be a game-changer for the entire sport, physical activity, and recreation sector.

Firelight supported the Institute for Circumpolar Health Research in developing a Pathway for Community Dialogue on Indigenous Health Data Governance Toolkit. This toolkit has been developed to support Indigenous leadership and community conversations in the area of health data governance and the collection and use of Indigenous health data. This project came out of the need and desire of communities to develop and use their own health data, with recognition that there are unique considerations in the North, and a wide disparity in capacity around data collection and use across communities.

This toolkit has also been developed to support territorial governments, health authorities, and health researchers in generating shared understandings of the ethical collection, use, and management of Indigenous health data, based on values and principles rooted in Northern Indigenous cultures and traditions, and reflect community realities, goals, and priorities.

Rachel Olson, PhD; Charlotte Moores; and Kathleen Cranfield, RM.

Yukon First Nations have a long history of birthing on the land with Indigenous midwives who held the birth knowledge necessary to safely deliver the next generations. Born into my Grandmother’s hands: Honouring First Nations’ birth knowledge and practice in North Yukon is a collection of stories and
knowledge that set out to explore the history of childbearing in the Yukon.

The main areas of focus in this book are stories of childbirth on the land; the history of traditional Indigenous midwifery and birthing practices; changes in maternity care, including relocation for childbirth; traditional parenting practices; and community values in relation to pregnancy and childbirth process.